The formation of devices in semiconductor material that utilize thin films are well known in the art. These thin films may comprises a variety of material such nickel chromium (NiCr) and chromium silicon (CrSi). The efficiency and accuracy of the devices depends upon the condition of the thin film material used and the cleanliness of electrical interconnections. Films (or layers) that are corroded or contaminated provide undesirable results. For example, resistor layers that are corroded or contaminated (e.g. has highly oxidized chromium) are undesirable because such conditions adversely affect the sheet resistance of the resistor.
Prior art process in forming semiconductor devices typically use hydrofluoric (HF) acid cleans in the formation to avoid contamination. However, prior art HF acid cleaning methods of semiconductor devices that include thin film resistors, silicide junctions and capacitors, can have a detrimental effect. For example, HF acid can degrade resistor match. Moreover, HF acid cleans prior to metal interconnect deposition can pit silicon junctions which degraded the junctions performance and degrade capacitor breakdown.
For the reasons stated above, and for other reasons stated below that will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading and understanding the present specification, there is a need in the art for a method of forming relatively high performance devices in semiconductor material.